Snap-switch.



E. C. WILCOX & B. A. SPITZER. SNAP swlTcH.

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1,169,099. l Patented 1311.18, 1916.

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SNAP SWITCH.v

APPLICATION FILED IuNE 22. 1914.

Patented Jan.18,1916."

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2 www l fm u JMW@ Il Ii I l I @f3/Siga I Y MA I Improvements in Snap-Switches, of whichv UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

-ERNEST C. WILCOX AND BENJAMIN .A. SPITZER, 0F MERIDEN, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGN- ORS TO THE CONNECTICUT TELEPHONE & ELECTRIC COMPANY, INC., 0F MERIDEN, CONNECTICUT, A CORPORATION OF CONNECTICUT.

SNAP-SWITCH.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Application led June 22, 1914. Serial No. 846,454.

T 0 all whom z' may concern.'

Be it known that We, ERNEST C. WrLCox and BENJAMIN A. SPITZER, citizens of the United States, residing at Meriden, New Haven county, State of' Connecticut, respectively, have invented certain new and useful the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

This invention relates to snap switches as designed, with particular reference to compact arrangement and convenience of operation, as Well as the improved structural features as hereinafter pointed out.

Specific structural embodiments of the 1nvention are illustrated in the drawings accompanying and forming part of the speciication and in Which- Figure 1 is alongitudinal sectional view through one form of a single unit switch construction in accordance with the present invention and shown as applied to the dash on amotor vehicle. Fig. 2 is a detail perspective view of the contact parts of the switch, the housing for the switch parts being indicated in dotted lines. Fig. 3 is a rear end elevation of the switch shown in" Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a transverse vertical section on the'line 4-4 of Fig. 1. Fig. 5 is a diagrammatic plan view of a plural unit switch mechanism composed of interconnected units as shown in Figyl.' Fig. 6 is van end elevation of a modified form' of plural unit switch. Fig. 7 is a diagrammatic plan of a further modified form of plural switch and of switch circuit. Fig. 8 is a transverse vertical section on an enlarged Yscale through the plural unit shown in Fig.

7. Fig. 9 is a diagrammatic plan of a switch and circuit constituting a modification of the circuit of Fig. 7.

/Before discussing the detailed structure shown in the drawings, we would have it understood that the switch construction shown` and described hereinis one which'not only possesses structural advantages as switch mechanism per se, but is so designed and constructed as to enable single units to be coupled into'gangs, and which is also susceptible of wide variationx and modification to meet differentA circuit conditions.

1n the accompanying drawings, and with reference particularly to Figs.- 1 to 4, 1 designates a tubular casing of insulating a'ble anchorage for the contact elements. AIn

the preferred form, the structure of each of these contact elements is the same and we will, therefore, describe specifically only one of these elements, it being'understood, ofl

course, that they are spaced at their' anchored ends and insulated from each other by the insulating material of the base, and that their contact ends are likewisespaced as will 'be evident. The contact members are preferablyfin the form of spring finger contacts and embody a tubular stem portion 2 interiorly threaded, the inner end of the stem portion terminating in a hexagonal nut or abutment 3. The outer end of this tubular portion 2 is originally of greater length than the overall length of the finished steml portion, and is utilized as a means for providing an end electrical connection or terminal for its contact member. A sleeve 4' iits over the stem portion 2, this sleeve being positioned adjacent the outer end of the tubular portion 2, and the extended end of the tubular portion 2 being upset against the face of this sleeve, these parts forming'an abutment complemental to and spaced from the hexagonal portion 3 of the stem. A screw 5, forming a binding post, fits in the threaded interior of the tubular portion 2 and is arranged'to hold a connector clip or Wire between its head and the exposed outer flanged end of the stem portion ofthe contact. The contact proper comprises a spring inger 6 having its end inturned at 7 to form a contact end for engagement with a reciprocating bridging plunger hereinafter described. The outer end of this spring finger is securely seated and held in a slot cut in the hexagonal abutment 3. In practice two or more of these contact members will be used in switch units. In the specific structure under discussion only` two areused, these being suitably secured in 'the insulating 'base of the casing 1, s o that the spaced abutments formed by the flanges on the stem portions of the contacts form thrust receiving anchorages for the contacts and serve to hold tact member hereinafter described. The

outer face of the casing is preferably provided with an insulating wall or walls 1 to insulate the terminal connections of the contacts from each other. The' outer and open end of the casing 1 is preferably provided with tubular bushings 8 molded therein and interiorly threaded, so that a suitable finish plate 9 may be secured to the open end of the casing 1, this plate likewise serving as a guide for a reciprocating contact-bridging plunger 10. This plunger' is preferably formed withY a metallic current conducting shank or core 11 (see Fig. 1) having a rounded nose 12 arranged to engage and spread apart the ends 7 of the spring contacts.

Rearwardly of the nose, the shank is depressed as at 13, to form a contact socket or depression to receive the end 7 of the contact springs. Rearwardly of this depression the shank 11 is reduced in diameter and extends out through a suitable aperture in the cover plate 9, and has a head 14 of insulating material molded tlereon. This reduced shank portion from the depression 13 rearwardly is provided with a covering of insulating material, such as a hard rubber composition, and is shaped to provide immediately adjacent to the depression 13, a ridge .15 forming an upward continuation of the depression, the insulation extending up to, preferably, the highest point of this ridge, and, of course, in the direction of the depression. 'This ridge 15 is offsuch diameter that when it engages the ends 7 of the spring contacts, it will expand or spring them apart to a substanial degree, so that these ends when they pass beyond the ridge 15, will snap intothe depression 13 which is shaped to correspond to these ends 7 and, therefore, forms with them a lock for the plunger in this position. By having the insulation extend to highest point of the ridge 15, a rubbing or sliding contact with lthe current conducting 4metal shank 13 is prevented, and a positive snap action -is secured. The insulation rearwardly of the ridge 15 is preferably shaped to provide a socket or depression 16, so that the plunger will -be held by the depressions 13 and 16 in its in and out positions respectively. The head 14 forms a push button, so that the switch may be readily controlled by the finger. Such a push button snap switch as described is Very advantageous when used in connection with lights of a motor car, a single switch such as heretofore describedbeing adapted to control either the front lighting or the rear or tail lighting, and the switch being suscepible of rearrangement to suit various lighting circuits and conditions. One such illustration is shown in Fig. 5 wherein a plurality of switch units 17 constructed in accordance with the single unit heretofore described, are associated together in series as a plural unit switch with their adjacent contact terminals on one side connected by a bus bar 18, so that the plural unit switch may be utilized to control the head, side, dash and tail lights of a motor car when the plungers of the various units are pulled out to contact making position. In this connection, it will be seen with particular reference to Fig. 1, that when the plunger is in the out position shown in full lines in Fig. 1, the metal of the portion 13 of the shank of the plunger forms a conductor bridging the contact ends 7 and closing the circuit through the connecting wires attached to the binding posts 5. These units in a plural unit construction need not be physically separate, but may be cast in a single base as shown in Fig. 6, wherein 19 designates a single base of insulating material in which are held the four separate electrical switch units such as shown in Figs. 1 and 2, these units as thus formed being, of course, insulated from each other and theirl terminal contact connections on one side being interconnected by the bus bar 20 as in the form shown in Fig. 5.

We have heretofore stated that a number of spring contacts may be varied. This is true both as to single switch units and as to plural switch units. In Figs. 7 and 8 we have shown a plural unit construction, and, diagrammatically in Fig. 7, a lighting circuit controlled thereby. This plural unit construction, in the present showing, comprises two switch units 21, suitably connected as in the manner heretofore described, to a finishing plate 22 (Fig. 8), the contact springs 23 of these units being three in number and-of the same construction as the contact springs heretofore scribed, and the contact ends 24 of the springs being in the same plane. The contact bridging plunger 25 is of the same construction as the single `contact plunger' shown particularly in Figs. 1 and 2 and the make and break will be accomplished in the same general manner. By connecting adjacent contact terminals of each unit and at opposite sides by bus bars 26, `having a single terminal connector 27 for each bus bar, the circuits controlled by each unit will overlap, and onel unit, when the vplunger is in contact bridging position, may-be utilized to control the head and tail lights of a motor specifically decar while the other unit may be utilized to an insulating wall 28 between the various terminal connectors of the contacts.

In Fig. 9 a modification ofthe switch mechanism shownin Figs. -7 and 8, consists in dispensing with the bus bar 26 and contacts 27 as service terminal connectors and in utilizing a single bus bar 29 on one side of the units 30 to connect these units, thereby enabling the switch to be used in connection with a two-wire system such as diagrammatically shown in Fig. 9, and as contrasted with the wire system shown in Fig. '7.

We have not herein attempted to trace out the various circuits through the lights shown as these circuits, per se, form no part of the present invention, and are merely illustrative of the uses to which the snaJp switch herein described may be adapted. The circuits, however, and theirV control through these switches, will be obvious to those skilled in the art.

We have herein shown and described speciic embodiments of snap switches, but desire it understood that these are preferred forms only, and that the invention itself is of broader scope and that the switches themselves' maybe modiiie'd within the spirit of the invention and the scope of the appended claims. For instance, a -cirCui-t selective function may be imparted to a single switch of the type shown in Figs. 1 and 2A by -providing say, four contact lingers with their contact ends in different transverse planes and by'providing the contact bridging plunger with four contact portions and with a fifth insulated portionarranged to engage one of the Contact fingers in one position v`of the plunger, these fingers in another position all making contact with the plunger. .Bythis means multipleand series circuits can becreated for dimming or brightening unit switch one of the be arranged as'described lights. Or again,in a multiple of the type shown in Fig. 8, switch A may with reference to Fig. 8, and the other may planes,

have its three contact lingers in different the plunger having three contact portions and an adjacent insulated portion arranged to engage rone of .the contact iingers in one position of the bridging plunger, these Contact lingers in, another position of the 'plunger all makingcontact therewith. This will enablel the circuits permitting 1. A quick-throw plunger switch com-l prising a substantially tubular insulating positions.

base having closed sides, a closed bottom and an open front end, spring contact lingers mounted on said closed bottom inside said tul bular base, internally screw threaded tubular anchorages engaged with the base portions of said contact lingers and) extended out through the bottom of the base, screws outside the' base engaged in said threaded tubular outwardly extended anchorages, a face plate secured to the base external terminal and closing'the open Jron't end of the same,

said face plate having a guide opening therethrough and a plunger working in the guide opening in said face plate, provided with conducting and non-conducting portions engaging the spring contact fingers.

' 2. A plural unit quick throw switch comprsins units, each ofsaid units comprising a hollow insulating base having a closed bottom andA an open front end, spring contact ingers seated in said hollow base, internally screw threaded tubular anchorages secured to the base portions of said contact lingers and extended out through the-bottom of said base, external terminal screws on the a plurality vof associated switch bottom of the base engaged in saidv threaded l tubular outwardly extended anchorages and a plunger provided with conducting and non-conducting portlons to vengage the spring contact fingers, `a face plate secured to the insulating bases ofthe several units units and secured to the bottoms of the units by the terminal screws of the units.

- .ERNEST C. WILCOX.

BENJAMIN A. SPITZER.

A. B. CosMAN.

said face plate having guide openings ico 

